


Before, During, and After

by honorary_penderwicks



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Early Relationship, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Getting Together, Katie is named and refered to as Katie for now, M/M, Pre-Kerberos Mission, Some of the soldiers are not named in the show, also im still going to ship shiro/matt because its fun ok, as I add more chapters I'll add more characters, dont worry its going to be the entire cast eventually, listen the fact that shiro had a boyfriend makes me happy, she will go undercover later, this is no longer canon compliant lmao, until we know more though I cant write it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-07-16
Packaged: 2019-05-31 00:50:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15108293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honorary_penderwicks/pseuds/honorary_penderwicks
Summary: This story is about Voltron, and what we don't get to see on screen. Matt and Shiro's days in the Garrison. The crew on the way to Kerberos. The abduction. The prison and the fights. Katie sneaking into the Garrison. Lance being homesick. Actual character depth for Hunk. Allura being the best character. Paladin bonding. What they brought with them. What they left behind.What we don't see on screen can be just as important as what we do. Reading about it can be just as fun.





	1. Before Kerberos: Acceptance

**Author's Note:**

> This story is about Voltron, and what we don't get to see on screen. I know that there aren't a lot of characters listed right now. Thats because they aren't in the story YET. They will be. It will be the entire cast eventually, including characters down to Shay and even Romelle. It's just going to take some time to get there. 
> 
> Chapters will be a range depending on how much content can really be pulled out of the snippets we dont get to see on screen. For instance, the chapter where Shiro actually looses his arm will probably be a lot longer than the one where Katie cuts her hair, but you see what I mean. This is (supposedly) what happens behind the scenes, when Voltron isn't fighting for freedom. It's what I would want to be able to see. 
> 
> The Voltron universe is absolutely incredible. It's very solid worldbuilding. The deal is that I am trying to make the idea of Shiro/Matt as canon compliant as possible. I take into consideration as much canon material as I can because the canon story is pretty awesome. But unfortunately they currently aren't canon and there aren't a ton of fics where they are still in the voltron universe.

            20 minutes until they absolutely had to leave for school. Matt was huddled under a blanket that he stole from Katie’s room. It was so heavy he was still warm despite the cold frost of an April morning.

            “Matt?” He turned at the sound of his father’s voice.

            “I thought I may see you here. There’s no mail until this afternoon, at the earliest.” Sam handed Matt a mug of steaming coffee.

            “I know.” Matt replied, softly trailing off. “I guess I was just… Wishful thinking.”

            “Understandable. Brutal application heh?”

            “You should know, you’ve done it and judged it before.”

            “Well, I think you should know then…” Sam reached behind him and revealed an envelope from the Galaxy Garrison. “This came yesterday.”

            “Are you kidding?” Matt leapt to his feet snatching the envelope away. “And you didn’t tell me?”

            “Old tricks, my son. A Holt family tradition to let the kids squirm a bit before getting their letters.”

            “Cruel and unusual dad. Cruel and unusual.”

            Matt looked down at the envelope. He began to tear into it as Katie burst out onto the porch where the duo sat.

            “Come on! I want to work on the program!” she took off down the driveway, always eager. Matt sighed and slung his backpack over his shoulder, stuffing the letter down inside. He waved goodbye. His father stood on the porch, small smile on his face before returning to his work inside.

            Katie knew that Matt had applied, but she didn’t know anything else. While he walked with her to the bus stop that took him to his school and her to hers, she bounced around laughing about the computing project her class was assigned, and how she got to be team leader and design the whole program from scratch. Matt wanted nothing more than to open that letter, find out everything about his future. Not on the bus though. Not where Katie could see.

            It wasn’t until lunch at school that he had the chance to look through the mail. He held the letter in his hands, his whole life. Yet, he hesitated. What would happen if he didn’t get in? Sure, his father had experience. The application was harsh though. No outside help on the questions, essays and recommendations. His father was not even permitted to help with the admissions this year, in case there was even a chance at a bias. A few moments passed in his deliberation, before he tore into the letter.

_Matthew Holt_

_We are pleased to announce that you have been accepted…_ No other words mattered to him that day.

            Katie, on the other hand…

            Matt knew as soon as he walked in the door; he could hear his mother cleaning the dishes and muttering under her breath, the same way she always did when she was sad. He knew Katie had been struggling. He knew she needed a little motivation. Swiping a slice of cake off the counter, he knocked on her door.


	2. Before Kerberos: Meeting Takashi Shirogane

            Two weeks before the beginning of the term. Katie spent every spare moment she had either studying or helping Matt pack his room into not much more than a storage space with an unfortunate mattress.

            One week before the term. The last few classes Matt was required to attend before he would be allowed to enroll at the Garrison. A placement test, one that would determine his official status. He knew that he wanted the communications officer position.

            Three days. Matt was officially packed up and ready to go, aside from a few outfits that would last him until he got his uniform. Everything he couldn’t take with him was neatly packed in boxes. _“Prevents the moths and mice.”_ His mother would say. _“We’ll unpack for you when you visit, but that won’t be for a while you know.”_

Moving day. Into a dormitory that is far too small for his tastes with a complete stranger for a roommate.

            “Dorms are on L-5 North. You’re in room A-45. Passwords are all on here, the number at the bottom is your ID. You need it to access the library, cafeteria and simulators. Welcome to the Galaxy Garrison.”

            The room was small. Bunk beds, with plastic covering and folded sheets on top of the mattress and two desks on opposite corners of the room, each with a Garrison issued laptop. One closet in the back corner. Six hangers, four drawers. _‘we’ll have to share.’_ Matt thought. Enough space for two, as long as the two could handle being around eachother in somewhat close quarters for extended periods of time.

            Knock on the door. “Hello?” A deep voice. Matt turned. “Um, hi. I’m Takashi. Shirogane. Um. Hi.” He waved nervously.

            “Hey.” Matt replied. “I’m Matt Holt.”

            “Guess we’re roommates?” Said Takashi.

            “I guess we are.” Matt replied. Takashi was weird. He seemed, nervous. Matt didn’t want to be around someone who was going to be nervous all the time. ‘ _You get what you get.’_

            They didn’t talk a lot that night. Not much aside from “I’ll take top bunk.” and “which desk do you want?” It wasn’t until Iverson was giving the orientation the next day that Matt really saw who Takashi was.

            “Who can tell me the errors of the crew in the 2034 flight test?” Iverson demanded. Takashi raised his hand. Iverson nodded at him.

            Takashi stood and saluted. “2034. Flight test of the new Q-538 model cargo ship. Simple mission to the moon and back, routine check. The crew had already logged the max hours on shift prior to performing the checks on the system. The engineer found a small leak and patched it, but didn’t report it properly. The communications officer and the pilot were not aware of the leak until after takeoff, but neither reported it or opted to return to Earth. The patch did not hold, resulting in engine failure. The crew had stalled in space. Because damage was not reported, there were not extra measures on communications, only standard ones. This resulted in loss of contact with Earth and the Moon base. Crew declared lost in space after 48 hours, and declared dead after 128.”

            His voice was steady. He _knew_ this case. He was confident, and smart. He knew exactly what and how he was doing.

            “Correct.” Stated Iverson. “What is your name, cadet?”

            Takashi saluted. “Shirogane, Takashi sir. First year pilot.”

            “Now,” Iverson gestured. “This is a cadet who knows their history. Take notes.” He turned to Takashi. “Be seated.” Takashi sat down.

            Matt didn’t pay much attention to the orientation. He already knew most of it. His father was usually the one leading. Lately though, he’d taken a step back from teaching. Focused more on the missions he went on. Matt figured it was probably because of him and Katie. Can’t teach your own kids.

            Takashi though. He wasn’t even sweating. He just presented in front of the entire flight training class. 50 of the best and brightest kids in the world, and he demolished them on the first day. Matt was going to have to make friends with him.


	3. Before Kerberos: Visits Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So for clarity reasons:  
> Takashi is used at the begining when Matt doesn't know him well enough to give him a nickname, and then later on when he is pissed off. (Legal name)
> 
> Shiro is used in public situations, and when Matt is feeling neutral towards him. (family/self given nickname)
> 
> Kashi is used as a fond nickname, the same way some people use darling or sweetheart. (Matt given nickname)
> 
> It seems confusing and I'm trying my best to make it as easy as possible (I just like the idea that shiro didn't go as shiro when he first got to the Garrison, and I also see Matt making up nicknames for everyone.)

__________________________

Present

             It takes a year before cadets are allowed to visit home. They are supposed to be under constant pressure. It is a military facility after all. The first year is crucial. Each cadet is supposed to work as hard as they can, for as long as they can to progress as far as they can. Whoever is the furthest behind gets cut. It’s not the best system, especially for teenagers. But it keeps the students motivated. After the first year, they can begin getting promotions. At least, that’s the idea. Students moving at an accelerated pace, yes, but at their own personal version of sprint is what made the Garrison so interesting.

             Classes were impossible. There was a designated amount of coursework to be completed. Once one was done, they could then move on to the next class. Some students took longer in some classes that other students may have breezed through. Matt was one of the  students who struggled more often than not. Of course, he had help.

Katie was always ready to help with research and proofreading. It was like he was at home some nights. That encryption that they had discussed on the roof to communicate with their father when he was in space was easy for her to learn. It gave Matt a code-breaking edge. It gave Katie something to do outside of schoolwork. And it let them both feel more at home.

            And then there was Takashi, or as the rest of the Garrison knew him, Shiro. Good study partner. Great friend. Bad influence. More than once had they snuck out of their rooms to spy on Iverson and the other teachers. Many times, had they broken into the teachers’ lounge on L-2. They knew the guest codes, the teacher codes, the official government codes. Security on the inside of the Garrison was incredibly lax, for such a high-tech facility.

            Finally though, it had been a year. Both Matt and Shiro were at the top of their class, progressing further than anyone else had. The Garrison wanted certain sections of the dorms cleared out for cleaning and renovations each year. That was the fun part about ever evolving technology. Matt was going home, and he was glad. While the year had been fun and eventful, the past few weeks had been hard on both Matt and Shiro. Matt wasn’t exactly happy, and Takashi knew it. Matt had cut out his personal nickname ‘Kashi’ from his vocabulary completely, and even stopped calling him Shiro. It was a sure sign that Matt was majorly pissed off.

            “When do you leave?” Shiro asked.

            “I’m out of here in about two hours? Give or take.” Matt replied.

            “Ah. Well. I’m gonna go home for a little while too. Hang out with my stepbrother.”

            “Sounds fun.” For a couple minutes Matt packed his stuff in silence.

            “Do you- “

            “Don’t.” Matt cut him off. There was nothing that could really said that could fix it.

____________________________

_Month 2_

            _“Come on!” Matt yelled though laughter. “You know as well as I do that the ship should have crashed!”_

_“The glitch was a coincidence.” Takashi laughed. “I’m sorry but they still passed.”_

_“It doesn’t matter if they passed or not. It was cheating.”_

_“You’re impossible.” Takashi had a look in his eyes that Matt was determined to ignore as long as he possibly could._

_“I truly am.”_

_“Lucky that I have you.”_

_Matt wasn’t particularly fond of feeling that was rising in his chest. It was too risky, and pretty inappropriate. But damn if Kashi’s eyes weren’t beautiful. Matt had to wonder where the name Kashi came from. ‘That’s new,’ he thought to himself._

______________________________

Present

            “I’ll see you in three weeks?” Takashi looked up at Matt from the bottom bunk.

            “Yeah. I’ll see you in three weeks.” Matt barely looked over at him.

            On the way to the area where cars were waiting to take cadets to the city Shiro called Matt back.

            He pretended not to hear.

____________________________

_Month 4_

_“Damn it!” Yelled Matt. “Damn it, damn it, damn it!!” He hit his hands on the dash again, frustrated beyond belief._

_“Need some help?” Matt turned to see a friendly face in the doorway. Shiro._

_“I need to pass this simulator. I need to move up to the next class.”_

_“You’ll get it. Just takes a little time, that’s all.”_

_“A little time my ass. You got this level on your third try!”_

_“Well, it might help to have a real pilot on board and not just a computer.”_

_“It might help to have a freaking engineer!”_

_“Hey.” Shiro said gently. “She’ll come around. Okay?”_

_She was an engineer that had been assigned to the team early on. They had gone through a lot together, but one petty fight was enough to make her switch to another class._

_“She may not come around. She’s stubborn.”_

_“Why does it matter so much if she doesn’t?” Shiro sounded weird. Matt didn’t care for it._

_“I don’t want to talk about it.”_

_“Fair enough.” Shiro paused. “Why don’t we try the level again? I can log in as a guest so they don’t think I gave you too much of an unfair advantage.”_

_“You’re a dick.” Matt snapped._

_“You still hang out with me.” Shiro still had the gentle, ‘I'm trying to be nice’ tone he got sometimes._

_Matt took a breath. “Alright. Help me out.”_

_______________________________

_Month 5_

            _“Do you hear something?”_

_“No?” Matt questioned._

_Shiro shushed him. His eyes widened. “Iverson.” Matt jumped up._

_“Where?”_

_“Big stall.”_

_The two dove into it. Matt pulled himself up onto the bar, tucking his feet off the ground._

_“Where did they go?” Ms. Hanson, Iverson’s lackey asked, rather loudly._

_“They’re nearby. No way are they going to get away with it.”_

_Shiro held the picture frame up in the air. Matt clapped his hand over his mouth to keep from giggling. It was a truly fun experience. As long as they didn’t get caught. He could feel his foot start to slip. Panicked eye contact. Shiro grabbed Matt’s ankle and pushed his shoulder against the wall. Shiro’s face was right in Matt’s. Matt screwed his eyes shut and took a deep breath._

_“They aren’t in here.” Iverson said. “There’s only one set of feet and they wouldn’t split up. Bad tactics.”_

_“Thank heaven for Iverson and his bad tactics.” Whispered Shiro, which did not help Matt in his quest to avoid thinking about Kashi in any way other than a friend._ _‘not Kashi. Shiro. My best friend, Shiro. Or Takashi. Either one. No personal nicknames.’ It was a new rule, that Matt would try his best to refer to him as either Shiro, or Takashi, as those were his names._

_They waited until they could hear Ms. Hanson’s clickity heels fade far down the corridor._

_“Hey. Um. You can open your eyes now.”_

_Matt hesitated. And then realized that hesitating was bad. And when he opened his eyes Shiro was still very incredibly close to him. Shiro gave a soft smile. He let go of Matt’s ankle._

____________________________

Present

The visit was perfect. Mostly. Family was nice to be around, and it was great to be there during the holidays. Katie was thrilled to see him. He was happy to be around all of his old friends from school.

            And yet he still missed Shiro. What a hilarious joke.  

____________________________

_Month 8_

_“Open it.”_

_“I don’t wanna.”_

_“You gotta. You know it took me five hours to open my acceptance letter? You already got into the school. You already passed 99% of the class. Your essay is fine. I promise you. You passed.”_

_Matt held the envelope in his hands, turning it over and over._

_“You promise me?” He said it cynically, but still. It was his chance._

_“Yes. Of course I promise you.” Shiro was calm._

_Matt opened the letter. He passed._

_“I passed!” Matt threw himself at Shiro for a hug. Shiro grabbed him by the waist and spun him around the room_

_“Don’t sound so shocked there. I told you that you would.” Shiro muttered in his ear, but he was laughing, so it was hard to sound upset._

_Matt was laughing too. “I know you did, Kashi. I know.” Matt flinched. ‘_ _did I just say Kashi out loud?’_

_Shiro put him down and looked at him for a moment, and that’s when Matt saw something change in his eyes, a different expression, almost something like defiance and determination. Shiro leaned down and kissed him._

____________________________

Present

            The doorbell rang. Nobody was expecting anyone, but Matt was already up. Shiro was standing there, looking flustered. Before Matt could say anything, Shiro spoke.

            “I don’t know what I’m doing here.” He said. “I didn’t think about it. I sort of woke up this morning and my brother was being all angsty and weird and I looked at my phone to call you, because you have a sister who’s not much younger than him and I wanted to see if she had ever been like that but I wasn’t sure if you were gonna answer. Which sucks, cause for a while there you were my best friend. So.” He paused. “I want to say I'm sorry. I want to talk about this.”

___________________________

_Month 10_

_“You can’t be serious.”_

_“You need to think about this! If we get caught they will move us to different classes. You saw what happened with Colin and Michelle! They barely even talk anymore.”_

_“So what! Who cares? I don’t!”_

_“Do you really never want to see each other? Do you really think that makes for a healthy relationship?”_

_“So what, you want us to just shove aside… this? You want to pretend this never_

_happened?”_

_“Wouldn’t that be best? This way, we could at least still be near each other. We can still work together.”_

            _“You were the one who kissed me, Takashi. I was willing, I was avoiding confrontation. I had rules. But you were the one who kissed me.”_

________________________________

Present

            “You have no right to be here.”

            “I know.”

            “You messed up big time.”

            “I know that too.”

            “Why are you here then? What makes you think that you can fix this?”

            “I messed up. You were right. I kissed you. I should have thought about it more or I should have been all in.”

            Matt hesitated and crossed his arms uncertainly. “So, are you?”

            “Am I…?”

            “All in? Or not?”

___________________________

Month 11

            _Shiro had tried to patch things up for a few weeks. There were moments when it looked like things could be the way they were. But it was still tense and Matt was in hell. How could he? It wasn’t like they **had** to get together. It wasn’t like it was **needed.** But… they did. And now it was over. And Shiro was pretending like it had never happened. Like they could go back to raising hell every week and celebrating and studying late at night. And it sucked even worse, because it felt like Shiro was already past it, and that he felt nothing about it at all._

 

__________________________

Present

            Shiro looked at him. His eyes were just as beautiful as ever and Matt hated that he was thinking about that.

            “I am, 100%, all in. Iverson be damned.”

            Matt stood there, in stupid silence. His heart was beating out of his chest but his brain wasn’t ready to forgive Shiro just yet. “You have a lot of work to do to make it up to me.” He softened. “Kashi.” Personal nickname. Shiro’s eyes lit up a little, sensing that there was hope.

            “I’ll do it. Anything. As long as I have you.”

            Matt looked at him. “Come inside. It’s freezing out here.” He paused. “You’re going to like my mother. She’ll make hot chocolate.”


	4. Before Kerberos: Shiro's Lake

            At the end of year three, cadets are given the longest break available, even longer than the transition from year four to five. One entire month of freedom. It’s less of a break for teachers and more for the students. All of the ones who made it this fare are ready to dive headfirst into specialties, even more than they have already. General requirements _should_ be taken care of by this point, and if they aren’t, well. It’s a pretty dramatic appeals process to stay in.

            For Shiro and Matt however this wasn’t a problem. Thanks to diligent study sessions and actually asking professors for help, they were both first and second in their class respectively. An entire month to be with their families before getting practically locked in the Garrison for two more years.

            But, unfortunately for Matt, an entire month with his family turned into two weeks, as his sister won a trip for herself plus two in a science contest. She gets to spend two weeks locked in a lab, learning all about computer science and physics while their parents get to spend it doing touristy things and actually relaxing for the first time ever, assuming of course that their father didn’t get pulled away on some Garrison business. They were all so excited, calling it their second honeymoon. It just so happened that that was the only time that Matt was home.

            Of course they offered to pay to bring him along. It would still have been a steal, three people for the price of one? Easy. But Matt knew that a child is not optimal company on a honeymoon. Plus, what would be the point? He would much rather spend the two weeks learning something other than the fake facts of a tourist trap.

            And so he was alone for the last two weeks of his vacation. Luckily, Shiro had run into a very similar problem.

            “So, Keith is out with the chicken pox?” Matt had him on the phone while making himself dinner while the rest of his family was packing. “Isn’t he a little old for that?”

            “Anyone can get it.”

            “Oh no, I'm sorry, I meant isn’t the _disease_ a little old? Wasn’t he vaccinated?”

            “He says he had them when he was a kid. Vaccinations have a weird effect on him, supposedly. I wasn’t there.”

            “Well then I guess that means that you’re going to be taking care of him?”

            “I can’t.”

            “What do you mean you can’t?”

            “Well, personally, I was never vaccinated.”

            Matt nearly dropped his spoon. “ _What?”_

            “I'm allergic to eggs.”

            “Really?”

            “Really truly.”

            Matt had to stifle laughter. “So who’s taking care of him?”

            “Himself. I’ve got him set up with money for pizza and sandwich makings and he’s more concerned about himself scarring than I am. Doctors say it’s a super mild case, they just want to make sure he doesn’t spread it. He’s thrilled about missing school and being home alone for two weeks.”

            “Then where are you going to go?”

            “That’s actually why I was calling.” Shiro paused. “My family, built a house on the lake that people are scared to visit.”

            “You own a radioactive house on a radioactive lake?”

            “It’s not radioactive. Keith and I tested it cause he was obsessed.”

            “Alright, so your family owns a house on the lake.”

            “Well I’m going there while he rides out the illness. And you tell me that your family is going on a vacation without you.”

            “Correct.” Matt liked where this was going.

            “How would you feel about joining me?”

            Matt grinned. “I’d love to Kashi.”

            “Awesome.” Shiro sounded happy. “So-” There was a crash in the background, and  distant yelling of the words ‘I'm fine!’. Shiro sighed. “I have to go deal with that. I'll call you later tonight?”

            “Sounds good Kashi. Talk to you later.” Matt hung up, but not before hearing Shiro yell ‘What did you break now!?’.

            Katie had been listening in on the stairs as younger siblings tend to do. She planned to tease him endlessly about this. She practically flounced down the stairs. “Who’s the girl?” she said in a sing-songy voice.

            “There is no girl.” Matt said in a deadpan voice. “Mac and cheese is on the stove.”

            “There has to be _someone._ Nobody has a dopey grin like that for just a friend.”

            “Eat your dinner.”

            “Is it because of the Garrison?”

            “Is _what_ because of the Garrison?” Matt said exasperated.

            “The reason that you won’t tell me who it is that you’re into?” Katie pushed. “Because I know that the Garrison frowns heavily upon relationships between cadets.”

            “Pidge-”

            “And I also know that you don’t care what the Garrison thinks so I guess that you’re going to do whatever you want.”

            “Pidge-” his tone sounded more warning like.

            “But at least know that I won’t tell the Garrison anything and I also know that you are pretty smart to have gotten in so you know that I wouldn’t-“

            “Katie!” Matt snapped. “Knock it off.”

            Katie fell quiet. Matt sighed. “I'm sorry. Just, stop asking me? Please?”

            She shrugged. “Fine.” She swiped a bowl of mac and cheese off the counter and disappeared upstairs.

            It wasn’t Sam who appeared next but Colleen. “You owe your sister an apology.”

            “I already said I was sorry.”

            “She’s still upset.”

            “She’ll live.”

            Colleen sat down. “She looks up to you. Mimics everything you do, she’s ten and practically worships the ground you walk on. She was so upset when you said no to coming on this trip with us.”

            “I would be an intrusion on you, and I would hardly even see her. And she does no such thing, she mocks me every chance I get.”

            “You should tell her.”

            “I don’t want to. It’s too risky. She has friends, who each have fathers who work in the Garrison.”

            “Have you no faith in her whatsoever. She is smarter than that!”

            “It's not just my career! It's Shiro’s too!” Matt slammed his hand down on the table. “I am not the bad guy here. I barely wanted to tell you and dad!”

            “You won’t get kicked out.”

            “I won't get to work with him, now or in the future. I won't get to see him for two years, not even on break. What kind of healthy relationship is that?” Matt stopped. “We agreed. Nobody, outside of you and dad, gets to know. Not even our siblings. He hasn’t told his brother either.”

            Colleen gave Matt a look.  “Apologize to your sister.”

            “I will when I go upstairs.”

            “And promise me that you’ll tell people eventually?”

            Matt looked down and laughed softly. “Mama, the only way that the Garrison would let us be together and work together, is if we were married. Is that what you want?”

            “I- I know that. That- That’s not what I am saying. I just, mean…” she trailed off.

            “If I promise you these things I can’t guarantee I'll be able to keep them.”

            “I just want you to be happy. And not stressed. And not yelling at your sister.”

            “I'm fine.” Matt paused. “I’m spending two weeks with him in his cabin. While you guys are gone.”

            Colleen shook her head “I won't be able to stop you will I?”

            “No, you will not.”

            “Be safe?”

            Matt made a face. “Mama, don’t.”

            Colleen raised her hands in surrender as she stood to leave. “Be nice to your sister.”

            “Yeah, yeah.” He would apologize again later.

            The phone rang.

_______________________

Next Day

            The Holts left in the very early morning. Goodbyes were exchanged, especially sad now that Matt wasn’t going to be home for two more years.

            “You better not get smarter than me.”

            “Not possible, Pidge.”

            “It's _Katie._ ”

            Matt laughed and turned to his parents. “Have a nice trip.”

            “Have a nice two weeks.” Said Colleen.

            “Hah! I will.”

            “Be good. Take care of my house.”

            “I'll take as good of care of it as I can.”

            The group left in the car that the company provided for them. Matt was alone.

            He spent the afternoon packing, cleaning and listening to old music. Shiro had decided to spend the day cleaning out the cabin; it wasn’t kept up very well, being that nobody ever used it. They decided Shiro would pick him up that evening, where they could get dinner and then go shopping for more real food to store in the cabin while they were away. 13 uninterrupted days before they would be back at this house. Lots of preparations to be done.

            Shiro arrived almost two hours early, which was completely fine by Matt, because Matt had also gotten done early.

            “Well hello you.”

            “I'm early.” Shiro looked hesitant.

            “I'm fine with that.”

            “Me too.”

            They left for dinner as soon as the car was packed. It was a nice place, one that Matt had been dying to take Shiro to for two years. It was a really great restaurant.

            “You know something.” Shiro said.

            “I know many things.” Matt joked.

            “We haven’t ever had a real chance to be together outside of the Garrison.”

            “This is true.”

            “So does that make this our first date?”

            “Oh come on. We’ve been together for over two years.”

            “Yeah, in dorm room bunkbeds and a public cafeteria. Study dates.”

            “So these past two years don’t count?” Matt said jokingly.

            “No, I'm not saying that-” Shiro stopped. “You're teasing me.”

            “Of course I am Kashi.”

            “Mean.”

            “You love me.”

            Shiro laughed. “I really do.”

            Once they were done with dinner, they stocked up on supermarket food, sunscreen and disposable batteries, as well as some other seemingly random items, such as fabric and screws. Shiro was a wall, refusing to talk about anything having to do with the cabin and what it contained. _‘You’ll have to see for yourself when you get there.’_ He kept saying. It was infuriating.

            The drive was incredible though. What would have been boring wasteland desert in the day, was somehow much better at night. No human light meant that every single star was out and shining brightly. Matt practically had his head out the window the entire time.

            When they finally got to the cabin it was nearly two in the morning.

            “Long drive.”

            “Pretty drive.” Said Matt pulling Shiro in for a kiss. “Prettier now.”

            “Tour?”

            “Please.”

            The cabin seemed sort of beaten down. It had a tiny porch with peeling paint, a faulty step and a swing that was missing a piece of fabric from the seat. The porch railing was loose and the doorknob nearly fell off in Shiro’s hand. But once they were inside, Matt understood the charm.

            It was tiny, for sure. A small kitchen off to the side with a wood burning stove and a sink with a dishrack. The shelves had a small set of plates and cups stacked neatly, clearly washed very recently. The cupboard was completely bare, not to the surprise of Matt, after all the shopping they did. There was a minifridge and a portable ice maker. The tap had a purifier attached at the nozzle, which implied that there was indoor plumbing. On the other side of the kitchen was a table, made out of the same kind of wood the house was. There was a small couch and an old television set near the entrance, with an absolutely ancient DVD player magically attached to it somehow, with a pile of DVD discs on top. There was a small room off to the opposite side of the kitchen that appeared to be a bathroom, and behind that was a bedroom with a king size bed, and two dressers, all in the matching wood of the rest of the furniture.

            “It's small. It was built as a getaway house for my great-grandparents. It was actually my grandfather who built the place with his bare hands, kind of an anniversary present. He had a thing for building things. He made his money that way and he didn’t want to just have money so he bought the land. Actually, he bought the lake too, and since everyone thought it was radioactive he got it for way less than its value. But when they died, they left the place to him and well. It's been passed down ever since.” Shiro explained. “Sometimes Keith and I will come here. He usually sleeps on the couch so I know it's comfortable, and if you really want I can crash on it, I know we don’t usually share-”

            Matt cut him off with a kiss. “The king bed is plenty big enough for the both of us Kashi.”

            Shiro’s attitude changed suddenly. “Is it now.”

            “Well I'm not completely sure.” muttered Matt. “We may need to test the theory. In fact, it's somewhat late.”

            “I guess testing a theory wouldn’t be so bad.” Shiro said, wrapping his arms around Matt’s waist.

            “So we should-” Matt was cut off by Shiro lifting him over his shoulder and carrying him into the other room. Matt laughed and hit his shoulder “That isn’t fair!”

            “No. More. Talking.” Shiro stated firmly, before slamming the door behind him.

_________________________

Next Day

            The next few days were perfect. They spent the days following a perfect routine. Matt made breakfast in the morning, then they would spend the day alternating between swimming and throwing rocks into the lake while just talking. At lunch they would eat sandwiches they packed back at the house and just had the best time. In the evenings when they were tired of the lake, Matt would clean from breakfast and Shiro would work on the house, painting and attempting to fix things up with an old toolbox, and later Matt would come out and actually fix the object that was broken in the first place. Shiro would make dinner while Matt yelled criticism about old movies that seemed very out of place.

            Of course these movies weren’t truly old, just strange _. ‘Who would care about knights in space, or wizards in space who couldn’t date other people? What kind of movie is this?’_ were the questions Matt would be shouting, as well as many, many puns.

            Shiro would always yell to pick something different out of the pile, there were dozens of movies that were just as old but better. Spy movies, for instance. And yet Matt never wanted to watch anything other than the Space Wizard/Knight movie as he so liked to call it. And they would eat dinner on the porch with the newly fixed swing, thanks to Shiro and his fabric, as well as Matt and his ability to actually fix things. And every evening, would end with stargazing, because someday, very soon, they were going to be up there.

            On the 8th day, Shiro talked about the lake.

            “You know this lake used to be a lot bigger.”

            “Oh yeah?” Matt said, comfortable relaxing up against Shiro in the sun.

            “Yeah. Used to be the biggest salt lake in the nation. They called it Great Salt Lake.”

            “Very original.”

            “Our predecessors were not the most creative.”

            “Hmmm.” Matt was beginning to fall asleep.

            “Anyway, the lake was actually one of the most affected areas when the solar flares happened.”

            “Hence the radioactivity.”

            “Well, that was a different scandal. The government wanted people to think the solar flares did more long term damage than they actually did so we may actually do something about it. And you know the laws that changed our energy systems as well as I do. But that’s not my point. My point is, well. Look.” And Matt did. “The flares did their worst here. Two sides in a battle, and the lake did take significant damage. I mean, there are parking lots 30 miles back where the shore used to be. But it lived. And it still has life.” Shiro pointed to the bugs landing on the water. “Pretty great, right? That something so tiny in comparison can stand up to the thing that changed our world forever?”

            “It is impressive.” Matt murmured.

            Shiro smiled. “I think it is.”


	5. Before Kerberos: Hidden Truths

           Back within the Garrison’s walls, Matt couldn’t sleep. He missed having Shiro and yes, a very nice bed to share, and even though they were right next to each other Matt couldn’t stand the idea of some inspector walking in and them getting caught. So he settled for insomnia and in the process he began to think about the recruiting information he had found on Katie’s wall.

           “Hey, Kashi. Are you up?” Matt poked his head over the railing.

           “Yes, of course.”

           “I think the Garrison is hiding something.” Matt said

           “What?”

           “Did you hear how old the youngest recruits are? 13! They’ve already started coming after Katie, who’s only ten. And they’ve started building fighters.”

           “Come down here.” Shiro said, moving over to make room. “Fighters?”

           “Yeah, but compatible with space. Like there are advanced aliens coming for us and we need to be prepared.” Matt swung down as he spoke and crawled beneath the covers.

           “That’s strange for sure but-”

           “I know there have been fighter _simulations_ , but I think the next generation is going to actually train pilots in the fighter class. I think we may be the last ones for purely scientific and cargo transport.”

           “Do you wanna do something about it?”

           “What would you say about learning the truth?”

           “With you, I would say let’s learn, but come on. We haven’t pulled a prank in over a year and a half, I thought those days were behind us.”

           “They’re recruiting children. Children! I'm not talking about stealing a picture frame anymore.”

           “Matt, _we_ were children when we signed up for this. We were only 16.”

           “God. That’s horrible. Why did we ever- they’re recruiting children to- to- do what? Fly better than adults? What could they possibly want with 13 year old kids?”

           “So you want to find out the truth.” Shiro said, redirecting him.

           “My father and I used to say what the Garrison doesn’t know. How do we know they aren’t saying the same thing about us?”

           Shiro didn’t speak for a moment. “So we break into our school.”

           Matt took a deep breath. “We break into our school.”

           Matt started to move back up to his bunk when Shiro wrapped an arm around his waist. “Don’t move.” Shiro kissed his neck. “This is better.”

           “We could get caught.”

           “At this time of night, we could do much more than sleep, and not get caught. Stay.”

           Matt stayed. They both slept better than they had in nearly three weeks; since the cabin.


	6. Before Kerberos: Garrison

            There are many things that the Garrison wanted to keep secret. For instance there are several recordings from deep space that make even the toughest generals queasy.

            There is a reason that the Garrison began testing the various fighter ships. They were afraid of the signals they were picking up.

            Another, very valid fear of theirs was the hackers who appeared to be getting closer and closer to actually cracking their systems. It was concerning, and Iverson was having none of it. There was a meeting of the board, top generals in every field to decide what to do next about these situations.

            “How long do we have?” Iverson started

            A young intern scrambled forward with papers. "Before the hackers crack in or the aliens make contact?"

            "Aliens."

            “According to the transmissions that we picked up? About, two years, Sir. Maybe less.”

            “What do we do?” one woman asked.

            Silence fell over the room.

            “Well, what are they looking for?” Iverson asked.

            “A lion sir. And something called Voltron.”

            “And why are they looking for it here?”

            “They seem to have traced it to this galaxy, but not our solar system. It's taking longer than usual, they said because there is some sort of energy protecting it.”

            “So if they come to Earth-” the woman was cut off.

            “We don’t know that they will.” An older man nearly yelled.

            “We can’t guarantee that they won't. That’s the danger here. If we can’t absolutely make sure that no aliens are going to search our planet for, whatever this is, then we have to be prepared.” Iverson jumped in.

            “Sir, there are no cadets that are fully trained in fighter skills. Our most recent graduates are all cargo, and it will be at least another four years before-” The intern said.

            “So we need to prepare the fighter pilot cadets. We accelerate their track, take away breaks, loosen up on the fundamentals. Really focus on specialty. And we campaign. We get more recruits, lower the signup age and advertise at all the science conventions, camps, schools, letters home.”

            “Lower the age, lower than 13? Isn’t that… Illegal?” another woman questioned.

            “Then we _make_ it legal.”

            “Still. Even if we streamline the process, we still have three years before anyone is ready to actually fight. Not to mention all of the hassle of government regulations, model testing and more. This is, decades, worth of work and you want us to be ready to do it in, two years?” a young soldier said.

            “She’s right. And that isn't even taking the P.R. side of things into account. How is it going to look to the public when we sink a ton of money into a project that they don’t know we need? And if we tell them why we do need it, there is still going to be backlash. How did we let it get this bad, how come we didn’t keep the public informed, why are you stealing our children, etc.”

            “The public will go mad if they hear anything about the aliens or useless military projects. It's hard to get work done with protesters ringing your doorbell every two seconds.”

            “I get how bad this is. But unless you all have some magical way of buying us some time, then I don’t know what else to do. Other than surrender.”

            “What about the hackers?” A man from the back of the room stood up. “Do you know who they are?” Iverson felt the question being directed at him. He got a chill through his spine. He ignored it. 

            “I have my suspects.”

            “I may have a way to buy us time.”

            Iverson didn’t recognize him. “What’s your name?”

            “James, sir. First name Hunter. I'm sorry to intrude, the council requested that I be in here.”

            “James.” Iverson paused. “What is your plan, then?”

            James stood. He sauntered to the front of the room as if he owned the place, and Iverson felt an instant dislike of the man.

            “You have people who have possibly already stolen, and are planning to steal more of, your data. Secrets, information. Stuff you don’t want the public to know. You know they’re on the inside. And you know you can't take them to trial, or fire them because everything they have, they’ll leak, and you can't take the gamble that they have nothing. You can't do anything about this. So what if they were a distraction.”

            “Meaning?”

            “You all have already noticed the pattern with these ships, you talked about it in the last meeting. When they find life, they stop. They take prisoners and search whatever planetoid they found the things on. You need a distraction from Earth. You need to buy time. And you need to make sure your little secrets about these aliens headed for Earth, never get out.”

            “What are you suggesting? Get to the point, soldier.”

            “Send them on a mission. A big one. Make a huge long speech that whoever hacked us will be found and brought to justice. Then, launch them into space for those aliens to find." James waved his hand dismissively. "It will buy us at least another 8-9 months, maybe more. Tell them it's prestigious. Tell them that they are going to help _prove_ the existence of aliens and make them collect samples of something, rocks, dirt, ice, I don’t care. Tell them they are going further than any human has ever been. Make them monitor the ship and send us updates on the mechanics. They get justice, no secrets get out, and you get a little more time to build your fighter crews. Win-win-win.”

            “That… is the _worst_ idea I have ever heard! You're talking about sacrificing our own men!” the first woman said, outraged.

            “How would that keep them from leaking any information they already have?” Yelled another.

            “What kind of security-“

            “How are you going to manage-“

            People were yelling over eachother. Some were rustling through papers, scribbling points furiously. Iverson, sat in silence.

            “Traitors!” Yelled James, slamming his fist on the table. The sharp noise silenced the room. “Whoever did this, committed treason by even _thinking_ about hacking into the Galaxy Garrison. They would spend their lives in jail anyways. We are doing them a kindness. They would go down as heroes! Their families wouldn’t have to watch them go through a painful and long trial!”

            “Their families would think that they are dead.”

            “Their families would receive a hefty compensation package, instead of being buried in legal fees. Tell me, what is better for them in the long run?”

            The woman and James argued for a while. Iverson tuned them out. He had a suspicion as to who the people doing the hacking were, and he did not like the idea of sacrificing them. “What if we brought them in and told them what is going on? I bet they would be more than happy to help train the new recruits, help protect the Earth without sending them on a suicide mission.”

            “You have teachers. What you don’t have is time. At least the people you send up there are guilty. Would you rather take volunteers? Or innocent people?”

            No. Iverson would not rather take innocent people. He would rather take nobody at all. The people he thought he was going to have to send were still so young. They were still good. It wasn’t their fault things were so bad. And he certainly didn’t blame them for wanting to know the truth. He would have wanted to know the truth too. He may have done the same thing if the situation were reversed. And did he think he _should_ die for it? No. But, he knew he would be willing to.

            Iverson turned to the intern. “Find out exactly who is doing the hacking. Bring me their files as soon as you know. Tell no one of your task, and tell no one anything about the hackers identity.”

            “Iverson, you _can't._ This is wrong on so many levels, it's not an option.”

            “Do you have a better plan? Do you have a plan that can buy us more time? Because I don’t. I don’t _care_ about the information or it's security at this point, let the protesters come! I care about the people. And a crew of three? Three in exchange for 9.2 billion? What is your solution that saves _all_ 9.2 billion and three lives?” The woman fell silent.

            James smiled, creepily. “You are making an excellent decision, commander.”

            Iverson didn’t believe that for a second. He shrugged off the attention. “The mission will be to Kerberos. Our ships are durable enough to make it. It will be the most historic mission yet. Have every 5th year cadet and graduated officer apply. I want every application on record before we select our lucky crew.”

            “Iverson _please_ think about what you are doing. You, are sending people, real people with families and lives, to _die.”_ She grabbed his arm desperately. “Don’t do this.”

            Iverson shook her hands off him. “Let go of me Colleen. You have no say, not in this matter.” He looked at her and his expression shifted. “You, are sworn to secrecy. You cannot tell your son, daughter, or husband of what transpired here today, is that clear?”

            She had a look in her eyes that said the opposite. “Crystal, sir.”

            He walked away without looking back.


	7. Before Kerberos: Application

            Graduation was great. It was a big ceremony for 37 cadets. And for a few months after, Matt and Shiro had practically been living on site due to the nature of the work they had been doing, mostly consulting older pilots and officers on their missions, as well as a couple of cargo transports to Earth’s moon. Matt was still holding out for a science related mission though. Kerberos was perfect. Shiro definitely believed that.

            “Have you applied?” The couple were walking down the street, heading to a dinner on the first night they had off in months.

            “We’re on a date. Do we have to talk about work?” Matt asked. Shiro gave him a look, and Matt sighed. “I haven’t decided if I am going to.”

            “What do you mean you haven’t decided? It’s not a hard decision. We would have a real shot if we applied. And you’ve wanted a real research mission since before you could talk.”

            Matt chuckled. “We would, and I know that. But my mother…”

            “Your mother?”

            “She _insists_ that I don’t bother applying. Very adamantly.”

            “Oh please. When will another opportunity come up like this?”

            “I know that, which is why I haven’t decided.”

            “You should still apply.”

            “My mother, is always right. If she says I shouldn’t apply, then she has her own reasons.”

            “Did she _give_ you those reasons?”

            “She’s… stubborn.” Matt sighed. “If it’s any consolation, she told my father not to apply either.” d

            “Well, _I_ already applied.”

            “Congratulations.”

            “You should apply.”

            “Haven’t we been here before?” Matt said teasingly.

            Shiro nudged him. “Alright, think about this. If I somehow, miraculously make it, the mission will be a year. An entire year, where we can only speak in code and not see each other, after essentially living together.”

            Matt did think about it. It was supposed to be the chance of a lifetime.

            “I'm going to think about it. I promise.”

            “Good.”

____________________________

 

            Shiro had to go back to the desert for a few days, Keith was trying to apply to the Garrison, but his previous record with school suspensions was making it difficult. This meant Matt was alone, in his apartment, where he never was because he was always with Shiro, either at Shiro’s apartment or at the hanger’s crappy cots. His apartment felt like less of an apartment than a storage space, boxes still unpacked, mostly unfurnished. Hell, he was never there to the point where he brought his duffel bag with him to stay one night. The only reason he even _had_ the apartment was to provide the Garrison with an actual address since he and Shiro didn’t want to push it. He even remembered the conversation. _‘We could be roommates. It would cut costs and still be a valid explanation.’ ‘Oh yes, roommates, in a two room apartment, one of those rooms being a bathroom, while we are both making enough to pay for a house individually. Not suspicious at all_.’

            Matt couldn’t sleep. It was normal for him to have an odd time sleeping when Shiro wasn’t there. He was attached. But this night was different. He couldn’t stop thinking about the mission. It was the biggest research mission that had ever been approved in history. It would be the highlight of his career. Not to mention that it would be an entire year where they wouldn’t be together. Matt ran through it so many times in his head, every outcome, every possible reason that his mother wouldn’t want him to go. He couldn’t come up with one that was worth staying behind. Matt took out his computer.

            Once the application was complete he could sleep a lot better. Not great, but better.

________________________

            Dinner the next night was fun for about twenty seconds before it deteriorated fast. Shiro had been invited to join them, and he was perfectly pleasant. Katie was staying over with a friend after her field trip to the planetarium. Of course though, Shiro just had to mention the mission.

            “Are you going to apply?” The question wasn’t directed at Matt for once, but Sam.

            “Well, I have been thinking about it.”

            “Thinking about it?! Oh you certainly have _not_ been thinking about it!” stated Colleen angrily. “You are not going to apply. They can’t choose you, if you apply.”

            “Oh, honey. I'm just considering applying. You’re so adamant about us not going, are you sure you can’t tell us why?”

            “You _know_ I can’t.”

            The couple began to argue, Colleen getting more agitated by the second. Matt shot Shiro a look and took a sip out of his glass.

            “I'm.. sorry. I didn’t mean to cause a problem, it's just that I thought it would neat, the three of us going on such a historic mission together.”

            “The _three_ of you!” Colleen was almost on the verge of hysterics. She turned to Matt sharply “Don’t tell me you're applying!”

            Matt full on glared at Shiro now. “Thanks a lot.” He muttered. To his credit, Shiro did look guilty. “I, actually, already did, mother.”

            This lead to another round of interrogation.

            “Mom!” yelled Matt after a full three minutes of being chewed out. “We have company. Please, let us be.” He said, calmer now.

            “Fine. But you _won't_ be going on that mission! I won't hear of it!” Colleen stood and stormed out. The room was quiet again.

            “Well.” Said Sam. “I'm sorry, Shiro. This isn’t what she is usually like, since her promotion-“

            “It's no trouble. I shouldn’t have brought it up, Matt did warn me.”

            “That’s right! I did warn you.” Matt seemed mad.

            “I guess I didn’t believe that it was this bad.” Shiro said, just a little too defensively.

            “Well you should have.” Matt snapped.

            “You could have told me that you applied.”

            “Oh, do _not_ start with me.” Shiro flinched at how similar Colleen and Matt sounded. Again, the room fell quiet. This time it stayed that way.

            After dinner was over, the couple left and headed to Shiro’s apartment. The drive was tense.

            “You applied.” Shiro said once they had pulled into the driveway.

            Matt sighed. “Don’t make me regret it.” He was calmer now.

            Shiro smiled at him, and planted a kiss on his cheek. “You won't.”


	8. Before Kerberos: Selection and Before Launch

         The selection announcement was more formal than anyone believed it was going to be. While there were no big speeches, all of the applicants were invited to sit in the front of the crowd. Each member on the board sat on their chairs on stage. Colleen was the furthest off to the side, and Matt could see her, pale and almost shaking. Something was wrong with her. A pit of fear began to grow in his stomach, just a little. He had never seen her this way before. What if there was something that she couldn’t tell him, a real reason?

         ‘ _It doesn’t matter anyway. The damage is done. We aren’t the most experienced crew in the pool, we might not get chosen, it's fine.’_ Matt was slightly delusional, and he could feel it. Not that there would be anything to be done.

         Iverson went on for a while about the new fighter program and their recruits, how the hackers would be caught, and even though they hadn’t broken into anything, the attempt was still treason, blah blah blah. Matt tuned him out. No way would they be caught, plus they had stopped months before graduation. As soon as he heard about his mother’s promotion. It wasn’t worth it, not to risk just their jobs but hers, Sam’s, the rest of the council. They hadn’t gotten very far anyhow. It no longer mattered. Recruiting age was lower, fighter class was officially instated, and what could they have really done anyway?

         “Without further ado, I would like to announce our crew for the highly anticipated Kerberos Mission. Samuel Holt - engineer, Takashi Shirogane - pilot, and Matthew Holt – communications officer. Congratulations.”

         Occasionally, Matt felt like time would completely stop. Moments would just be frozen in one second, before everything would return to normal. This was one of those moments. Matt felt Shiro throw his arm around him and mess up his hair. Matt was smiling and laughing. There was applause. Everything was good. But when he looked over at his mother the sinking feeling in his gut ruined it. She wasn’t just pale and shaking now. She was leaning into a brown bag, breathing heavily, tears rolling down her face.

         In an instant Matt was brought back to reality. “We got it Matt! We got the job!” Shiro pulled him up and gave him a big hug, facing him away from the stage and his mom. It made him feel a little better.

         Colleen spent the next two weeks in bed. She didn’t get out for anything but the bathroom. Even food had to be brought up to her, and even when it was she barely ate a thing. Sam said that she went through this when she lost her parents. Matt was home and around her as much as he could be, but the job mostly fell to Katie. He had to prepare.

         Six weeks is what it took to prepare the rocket, the ship, the supplies. They spent their time learning the mission inside and out, preparing the experiments, testing all of the equipment.

         The second she went back to work, which was something Katie had been urging her to do, Colleen quit her job. Sam and the family didn’t even know about it for 11 days, not until Iverson came to see them off.

         Matt finally had enough. He barged into her bedroom where she was again, just sitting in her bed. “What is wrong? Why are you behaving this way? You worked your entire career to get _that job_ and you just quit it? Out of the blue? Why don’t you want us to go on this mission? What is holding you back?”

         “What?”

         “You heard me.” Matt sighed. “Just… tell me what’s going on. Please. We launch in two days, and I'm spending tomorrow with Shiro. If you have a valid reason for me to quit, just _tell me.”_

         “Why can't you take it on faith?”

         “Why don’t you trust me enough to tell me!?”

         “It's not that I don’t trust you. It's that I know you. You want to fix everything. You can't fix this. I'm scared. Alright? I just- I have a bad feeling about this mission. I'm scared you won't come back, and if I'm right, I'm losing a husband and a son.

         “You have nothing to fear. The Garrison has taken every precaution. It's going to be fine. Better than fine. It's going to be great!”

         Colleen sighed and turned away. “I'm glad you think so.”

________________________

         The day before launch, all members of the crew who are actually leaving Earth were given a day to enjoy the sun. It was a tradition, invented primarily for morale. Shiro and Matt had been arguing (more like teasing) for weeks about whether they should spend the day together or not. It was like they were going to be trapped in a very confined space for a very long period of time.

         In the end, it was a compromise. Half day, meeting up for a late lunch and spending the night in Shiro’s apartment. Keith needed some help at the Garrison. He had gotten in (barely) and was consistently getting into trouble. Before Shiro left, he wanted to sort everything out. Matt spent the morning playing insanely old video games with Katie, a fitting way to spend the last day with a sun, locked inside looking at a screen.

         Shiro met Matt outside on the porch. Their plans consisted of spending the rest of the day outside in the fresh air with a picnic basket, after driving a short distance to a small town (ironically) named Oasis. It was the only place within a reasonable driving range that had actual parks with green grass and a temperature that didn’t burn your skin within seconds of being outside.

         They watched the sunset, talking about nothing and everything, as they always did on dates. But then Shiro said something that really brought Matt back to reality.

         “I wanna tell my brother about you.”

         “O-kay?” Matt said questioningly.

         “I want you to tell your sister too.”

         “We talked about this, we would be married, or at least engaged."

         “I know we talked about this. It's actually what I want to talk about.” Shiro took a deep breath. “We have been together for over five years now. It’ll be six in a few days, and seven by the time we get back. When we get back, we should talk. About getting married.”

         Matt pushed himself up so he was sitting upright. “Is this you proposing? Are you proposing to me right now?”

         “No, not yet, I'm just... thinking.” Shiro ran his hands through his hair. “A proposal should be a surprise, but a marriage shouldn’t. My mom said that a lot, especially when she watched old TV.” He paused. “I'm rambling. I wanted to see if you had thought about it at all. I think that when we get back, we should think about getting married. As long as you want it too.”

         “I agree with that.” Matt liked the idea of proposals vs marriage. “You’re going to have to do a way better job proposing than a ‘we should get married.’”

         “I will.”

         Matt startled a little hearing the words _‘I will’_. Shiro had thought about this before. The thought made him grin.

         Shiro nudged him. “You look happy.”

         “You told me just now that someday, even though it's in the somewhat far future, you are planning on proposing. Of course I'm happy Kashi.”

         Shiro laughed. “Good.”


End file.
